Friday, August 7, 2026 (starting at 2PM) to Sunday, August 9, 2026 (ending at Noon)
Location:
- The yard of St. Stephen’s Anglican Church, 7921 St. Stephens Road (off Mt. Newton Cross Rd.), Saanichton, BC, Canada V8M 1S2.
- What3Words: neutron.servant.squirted
- Lat 48.597218°N, Long 123.455576°W
Island Star Party 2026 Press Release
The public is invited to this year’s Island Star Party, which will take place under dark skies on the grounds of St. Stephen’s Anglican Church in Saanichton on the nights of Friday August 7 and Saturday August 8. Lots of amateur astronomers will be there to talk about astronomy and to help you observe celestial objects after dark. There will be activities organized for the afternoons. Camp overnight (1 night or 2), or just drop in for an evening of fun and fascination.
Cost: Free of charge for drop-ins! Suggested donation of $20/Adult observers who camp overnight (cash only) – one night or two. Kids camp free.
The Victoria Centre of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada (RASC) sponsors the Island Star Party, which is open to astronomers and members of the public who wish to observe celestial objects from St. Stephen’s Church yard.
Members of the public can drop in during the Star Party free of charge. People who choose to camp overnight near the observing field are urged to make a donation to help defray expenses.
“We’ll enjoy the night sky together. Bring your telescope if you like. There will be many for you to look through. And for those who don’t know where to start, we’ll show you around,” said Star Party Coordinator Randy Enkin.
Everyone who is present is entitled to tickets for door prizes, including a telescope. There will also be activities in the afternoons and evenings, including telescope walks, and expert speakers.
Speakers
Friday August 7, we will hear Prof. Deborah Lokhorst of the University of Victoria talk about the MOTHRA telephoto array – a telescope with more than 1000 eyes.
Bio: Deborah Lokhorst is a Research Officer at the National Research Council Canada Herzberg Astronomy & Astrophysics Research Centre and uses a combination of instrumentation, observation and theoretical astrophysics to investigate galaxy formation and evolution, and the role of dark matter in the universe. Deborah completed her Ph.D. at the University of Toronto and Dunlap Institute in 2021 and is the Project Director and co-PI of MOTHRA, which is the latest evolution of the Dragonfly Telephoto Array designed to carry out an imaging campaign to map out the circumgalactic medium of local galaxies in three optical emission lines.
Saturday August 8, Dominion Astrophysical Observatory Director, James Di Francesco, will talk about “The Coming Generation of Very Large Optical Telescopes”.
Bio: Dr. James Di Francesco is the Director, Optical Astronomy and the Director, Dominion Astrophysical Observatory at the National Research Council’s (NRC’s) Herzberg Astronomy and Astrophysics Research Centre in Victoria, BC. James comes from Ontario, and received his BSc in Astronomy and Physics at the University of Toronto in 1990 and his PhD in Astronomy at The University of Texas at Austin in 1997. He joined NRC in 2002 after two postdoctoral fellowships at the Harvard-Smithsonian Centre for Astrophysics in Cambridge, MA and the University of California, Berkeley. For many years, James was involved in Canada’s participation in the Atacama Large Millimetre Array project in Chile, the largest such high-frequency radio observatory in the world, and now chairs its Board. James has been a Director at NRC since 2018. His research interests include observational studies of star and planet formation throughout the Galaxy.
Don’t want to camp? No problem if you live in the Greater Victoria area, you can drive home after spending an evening on the observing field. Victoria is a tourist city with all manner of accommodations. Closest hotels are in Brentwood Bay, Saanichton and Sidney.
Staying after dark? Please bring a red light with you – do not use white lights, including cellphone flashes!
We have branded merchandise for the Victoria Centre of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada. We have T-Shirts in all sizes, in Black, Blue and Green. They are excellent quality, printed here in Victoria by Rain Coast Print Shop. Tell me what size/colour you want, and I’ll put it aside with your name on it. $25.
And these whiskey glasses that we hand out as awards have proven to be popular. We get them engraved here in Victoria by Showcase Awards. We are now selling them for $35 for the pair, in a lovely velvet box.
Contact Randy Enkin if you need more info about the star party event and/or to order your merch – Email or +1 (250) 588-4904 mobile
Photo gallery of last year’s 2025 Island Star Party.
The RASC Victoria Centre is proud of its association with both amateur and professional astronomy in Victoria and its support for public education in Astronomy. The Island Star Party has taken place in the past under the sponsorship of the RASC Victoria Centre and the Cowichan Valley Starfinders.
Media Coverage
- Our Community: All welcome at Island Star Party – Jeff Bell, Times Colonist
- Calling all stargazers: Free star party returns to Central Saanich this weekend – Adam Chan, CHEK News